Recent improvements in endoscope technology have provided great advances in the practice of medicine. These advances in endoscope technology have enabled medical practitioners to increase the ability to research patient conditions and aid in the diagnosis of heretofore difficult to diagnose conditions. Once the difficult to diagnose conditions are identified, the correct medical treatment can be applied with confidence. In addition to diagnostic applications, endoscopes are used to treat a growing number of conditions.
Endoscopes are widely used on a large variety of organs in the human body, as well as in veterinary applications. These organs include, but are not limited to, digestive, respiratory, urinary, gynecological, orthopedic and otorhinolaryngological systems. The endoscopes used on these various organs of the human body are so expensive that they cannot simply be discarded after a single use on a single patient, but instead must be applied successfully to many patients. Therefore, the used endoscope must be thoroughly cleaned and disinfected before being available for use on another patient.
Currently, there are two types of endoscope cleaning and disinfecting apparatuses and methods. The first is generally utilized in well-financed operations, such as big hospitals. These well-financed institutions generally use an automatic endoscope cleaning and disinfecting machine costing several thousand dollars. The automatic cleaning and disinfecting machine operates much like a dishwasher in cleaning and disinfecting the endoscope. These machines can be costly to operate and repair.
The second type of endoscope cleaning apparatus is a soaking basin. The soaking basin type endoscope cleaning apparatus utilizes a basin to soak an endoscope in a cleaning solution, followed by soaking the endoscope in a disinfecting solution. The soaking basins are usually box shaped containers, with lids. The disinfecting solution is typically glutaraldehyde, a toxic substance. There are numerous problems with using glutaraldehyde. The used and discarded solution is toxic to the environment. The larger the quantity of glutaraldehyde used in the disinfecting process, the more the environmental damage from the discarded solution. Decreasing the quantity of glutaraldehyde needed for this process would benefit the environment.
While being used for soaking the instruments, glutaraldehyde evaporates, creating noxious and toxic fumes that build up within the soaking basins. Endoscope cleaning staff must wear badges monitoring their exposure to glutaraldehyde fumes. In order to try to limit human exposure to these toxic fumes, the soaking basins are often located in ventilation hoods having air removal fans for removing those fumes that escape from the soaking basins when their lids are removed. Despite provision of the hoods and fans, many endoscope cleaning and disinfecting rooms still smell strongly of glutaraldehyde.
Because ventilation hoods are not one-hundred percent efficient in removing those fumes that escape from the soaking basins when the lids are removed, it is desirable to maintain the amount of vapors present in the soaking basins at the lowest level possible at all times. Thus, a heretofore unaddressed need exists in the industry to address the aforementioned deficiencies and inadequacies.